Sony HXR-NX5U NXCAM

[gymcoach]

Read about this camera and it sounds pretty good. Wondering if anyone has any thoughts on it. I was thinking about the panasonic cameras till i read about this. I trust the people on the forum and would like the get some feedback before buying.

[Richvideo]

The camera has a serious problem and the fix for it is not in yet.
I was very close to buying the camera but Sony screwed it up so I am going with the Sony EX1r-It is costing me way more but I know that it works.
Read the posts here
http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-nxcam-hxr-nx5u/475503-if-you-experiencing-buffering-problem-read-post-here-only.html

[gymcoach]

Ok what would be a good camera in this price range. I have seen some panny 200's used in on ebay and craigslist, but i have to get the p2 carts which are expensive. Any ideas?

[Rich Deustachio]

I would recommend the JVC GY-HM 700 http://exposureroom.com/members/philipbloom/3534a3149eed43dfbd283156f20ff563/

An update on that review, you no longer need to buy the optional SxS recording device to get it to record in Sony HDEX MP4 format, they have firmware updated the camera so it can record in both formats to the SD cards.

[gymcoach]

Have you used this camera? it does the 4.2.0 so i would not be good for green screening and it records it is 720 with an upshift to 1080. I like the shots. Do both the formats work with speededit?

[Rich Deustachio]

A friend of mine has it and did use it for green screening. Where did you read it was 4.2.0?

Here are the specs from JVC

http://pro.jvc.com/prof/attributes/specs.jsp?model_id=MDL101851&feature_id=03

http://pro.jvc.com/prof/attributes/tech_desc.jsp?model_id=MDL101851&feature_id=02

I sent a clip to NewTek and they said the HDCAM EX MPEG4 clips work perfectly in SE 2.0 but not having 2.0 SE yet I can't sat from personal experience.

Keep in mind the XDCAM codec the camera uses is actually an MPEG2 codec and is wrapped to look like an MPEG4 as well as wrapped to look like a Quicktime file.

See this explanation. http://www.jvcpro.eu/jpe/video/article.933.html

[Richvideo]

You can get a nice picture out of Sony EX1r.Here is a good example
http://www.vimeo.com/4052886

It also has 1/2 inch chips which gives it a bit of an edge on light sensitivity.

You can get this adapter and get hours of recording time.

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-xdcam-ex-cinealta/240132-e-films-australia-releases-e-hdr-hard-disk-recorder.html
A camera mountable version will be out this month

[Rich Deustachio]

The only problems I have with the EX-1 and EX-3 is that the chips are CMOS and have real bad rolling shutter problem and I also don't like non shoulder mounted cameras.

[Richvideo]

In most real shooting situations the rolling shutter does not cause much of a problem..It takes a certain type of motion to make it show up. The Sony clip browser software can fix some of it when importing the software now.
Nobody hates a camera without a shoulder mount more than me :)
have been shooting that way for 25 years but if you buy a shoulder mount brace for the camera it is fine...The cheapest option is like $40 and it works well
http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-xdcam-ex-cinealta/238081-not-so-el-cheapo.html

I plan on getting this
http://professionalvideoimaging.com/demo1.html
or
http://www.varizoom.com/products/supports/vzdvtraveler.html

[gymcoach]

A friend of mine has it and did use it for green screening. Where did you read it was 4.2.0?

Here are the specs from JVC

http://pro.jvc.com/prof/attributes/specs.jsp?model_id=MDL101851&feature_id=03

http://pro.jvc.com/prof/attributes/tech_desc.jsp?model_id=MDL101851&feature_id=02

I sent a clip to NewTek and they said the HDCAM EX MPEG4 clips work perfectly in SE 2.0 but not having 2.0 SE yet I can't sat from personal experience.

Keep in mind the XDCAM codec the camera uses is actually an MPEG2 codec and is wrapped to look like an MPEG4 as well as wrapped to look like a Quicktime file.

See this explanation. http://www.jvcpro.eu/jpe/video/article.933.html

It says it here
http://www.usjvc.com/faq/index.php?action=artikel&cat=16&id=121&artlang=en
It is 4.2.2 till it puts it on the cards then it goes to 4.2.0

[Rich Deustachio]

Gymcoach,

Well thanks for that info. As it says you can use the SDI output for the 4.2.2 clips.

But like I said before he did use it with the Quicktime wrapper and the green screen footage keyed out fine.


Richvideo,

I hate those braces more than I hate non shoulder mounted cameras. Most are awkward and get in the way. The second one you showed didn't look that bad but I would still rather hold out for a shoulder mount camera that fits my needs.

[Richvideo]

I hear you Rich. I borrowed an old Varizoom one with the stick the first time I shot with the EX1 and at first it seemed okay, but when shooting the actual event it was BAD..It forced your neck back too much and it was very painful to shoot with and the EX1 is not a camera you can handhold for long so I had to deal with the pain....That is when I went looking for a better solution and that $40 one did the trick-
It allows you to get the viewfinder up to your eye and it fits on your shoulder fine--It could use some additional padding but it gets the job done.

[Richvideo]

I heard today that Sony has a fix for the NX5U problems
http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-nxcam-hxr-nx5u/478064-nx5u-buffer-error-w-camera-fmu128-solution-firmware-update.html

[gymcoach]

So would it now, with the fix, be a good camera for the price. I like the JVC 700 but i want to get something cheaper till some business picks up. I would like to get it later and use this one as the second camera, or would it be hard to match the cameras in post?

[Richvideo]

I feel you get a good bang for the buck with the NX5U..It has a updated steady shot feature as well.
Long recording time with the optional Flash Drive-You just missed out on the $500 rebate for that .